LGBTQ+ Legislative Tracker

There have been dozens of anti-transgender legislation created and considered this 2021 season. We know from research done by The Trevor Project that just the introduction of these bills has negatively impacted transgender youth. Their recent survey found that “76% of the respondents indicated that recent politics impacted their mental health and/or sense of self” (The Trevor Project, 2019). This anti-transgender legislation is harmful both physically and mentally for transgender people. That same report found that “more than half of transgender and non-binary youth have seriously considered suicide” (The Trevor Project, 2019). The introduction (and in some cases making these bills into law) will be detrimental to trans youth. 

Update on the Arkansas bill HB1570: This bill will strip trans youth of their healthcare. The Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson did veto the bill, but then the Arkansas House voted 71-24 to override that veto and the Arkansas Senate voted 25-8 shortly after (Cole, 2021). The ACLU is preparing to fight this law. You can follow more updates on this by following Chase Strangio (@ChaseStrangio), the deputy director for transgender justice with the ACLU's LGBTQ & HIV Project and the ACLU (@aclu_nationwide) on all social media platforms. 

You can get involved by following these pieces of legislation across the country using the Legislative Tracker by Freedom for All Americans: https://freedomforallamericans.org/legislative-tracker/

The bills can be viewed based on the type of legislation or by the location. There are tabs to track the different types of legislation including anti-transgender, religious exemption, local control, pro-LGBTQ nondiscrimination bills, anti-transgender medical care bans, and nati-transgender student athletics. Once you click on the category, each bill will be shown and includes information on the sponsors of the bill, the recent action, and any other important information about the status of the bill. To view based on location, scroll down to the map and click on the state you are interested in. 

As of today (April 10th, 2021), the states with anti-trans legislation is as follows: 

  • Alabama (3 bills)

  • Arkansas (6 bills)

  • Arizona (3 bills)

  • Connecticut (2 bills)

  • Florida (3 bills)

  • Georgia (4 bills)

  • Hawaii (1 bill)

  • Iowa (8 bills)

  • Indiana (3 bills)

  • Kansas (3 bills)

  • Kentucky (5 bills)

  • Maine (1 bill)

  • Michigan (1 bill)

  • Minnesota (4 bills)

  • Missouri (9 bills)

  • Mississippi (2 bills)

  • Montana (7 bills)

  • North Carolina (1 bill)

  • North Dakota (1 bill)

  • New Hampshire (2 bills)

  • New Jersey (1 bill)

  • New Mexico (1 bill)

  • Ohio (2 bills)

  • Oklahoma (4 bills)

  • Pennsylvania (1 bill)

  • Rhode Island (1 bill)

  • South Carolina (4 bills)

  • South Dakota (1 bill)

  • Tennessee (9 bills)

  • Texas (12 bills)

  • Utah (2 bills)

  • Wisconsin (2 bills) 

  • West Virginia (7 bills)

GET INVOLVED: Contact your representatives and tell them to vote NO on any bill that would further stigmatize, harm, or discriminate against trans people and especially trans youth. Especially if you live in one of the states listed above, please contact your representative and make your voice heard.

Photo credits: @sarah.epperson

Resources: 

Cole, D. (2021). Arkansas becomes first state to outlaw gender-affirming treatment for trans-youth. CNN News. Retrieved from https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/06/politics/arkansas-transgender-health-care-veto-override/index.html 

The Trevor Project. (2019). National survey of LGBTQ youth mental health. Retrieved from https://www.thetrevorproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/The-Trevor-Project-National-Survey-Results-2019.pdf 



Lucy Dollinger